ClimateWire
June 5, 2012 Tuesday
SECTION: TODAY'S STORIES Vol. 10 No. 9
Christa Marshall, E&E reporter
More than 500 organizations in the United States and Canada blacked out their websites yesterday to protest what they say are draconian cuts to the Canadian environmental budget.
The "Black Out Speak Out" campaign, whose supporters ranged from Canadian opposition parties in Parliament to author Margaret Atwood, involved full shutdowns of organizational websites, except for black home pages with supporting phrases such as "silence is not an option." The organizations also held multiple news conferences, blanketed social media sites such as Twitter and ran advertisements in
Canadian newspapers.
The groups and individuals are slamming a proposed budget bill, known as C-38, that they say proposes some of the worst environmental rollbacks in Canadian history. It would eliminate the Kyoto Protocol Implementation Act, streamline the permitting process for oil sands projects, alter the federal Fisheries Act and add new enforcement penalties for charities engaging in political activity (ClimateWire, May
8).
The budget would, for example, require most oil sands hearings to be completed in two years or less, rather than the usual multiyear process to approve a given project. It is expected to become law later this summer, considering the dominance of Prime Minister Stephen Harper's party in Parliament.
"The darkening of websites and the thousands of letters, blogs, tweets and other actions by landowners, businesses, First Nations, trade unions, scientists and citizens reflect the grave concern and deep frustration Canadians feel about the direction the federal government is heading," said Alex Neve, secretary-general of Amnesty
International Canada, one of the groups supporting the effort.
U.S. groups such as the National Wildlife Federation, the Sierra Club, 350.org and the Natural Resources Defense Council also blacked out their websites for a period of time yesterday in support. Oil sands crude is a target
The campaign comes at a pivotal time for Canadian environmental rules, and for the country's oil sands region in particular. The oil sands industry could become landlocked, without an outlet to send crude to market by 2016 or so without new pipeline capacity, according to some estimates. Albertan oil is 14 to 20 percent more greenhouse gas-intensive than other imported crudes heading to U.S. refineries, according to a Congressional Research Service report released last month.
Analysts say the budget is significant for altering the dynamic for projects such as
Enbridge's proposed $5.5 billion Northern Gateway pipeline -- which would carry oil

sands crude to Canada's West Coast if built. The Enbridge project is undergoing hearings in front of a joint Canadian panel.
Canadian government officials have said the expedited rules for hearings outlined in the budget will be retroactive for the Northern Gateway, although they have not provided details of the process yet.
Canadian officials also are making the case publicly that they believe the environmental protests are misleading and threatening Canadian jobs. The province of Alberta collects about $3.7 billion in royalties from oil sands projects, or about a tenth of all provincial revenue.
Yesterday, 10 of the government's ministers traversed the country to support the national "resource development" plan enshrined in the budget via speeches and events.
"The time is now for Canada's immense resources. Canada must compete with other resource-rich countries around the world for these job-creating investment dollars.
And this is why we need to ensure timely, efficient and effective project reviews,"
Natural Resources Minister Joe Oliver said in speech in Quebec.